The Arctic is experiencing a 3,000-year high for wildfires. Acting as the “Earth’s early warning system,” what happens there could trickle down to the rest of the globe.

The wildfire toll is significant, as about 57.8 million Arctic acres have burned during the three studied years.

From Siberia to Brazil, wildfires are moving underground and burning up massive carbon deposits. The resulting emissions threaten to worsen global warming. The Arctic tundra. The vast floodplains of ...

This article is part of TPM Cafe, TPM’s home for opinion and news analysis. It was originally published at The Conversation. The blanket of wildfire smoke that spread across large parts of the U.S.